AT&T exec calls iPhone 'game changer'

The incoming CEO of AT&T said Wednesday that expectations are "too low" for Apple Inc.'s iPhone, which his company will start selling next month. "The iPhone is going to be a game changer," Randall Stephenson said at an investor conference in New York. "I don't know what your expectations are for the iPhone, but I would tell you they're probably too low at this point." The iPhone, which blends a mobile phone with the iPod music player, has attracted interest from more than 1 million customers, he said. Apple expects to sell 10 million iPhones next year, and AT&T won exclusive rights to distribute the product in the U.S. AT&T's cell phone unit, formerly known as Cingular Wireless, plans to use the iPhone to recruit subscribers. San Antonio-based AT&T has 62.2 million wireless customers, the most in the nation. Stephenson, chief operating officer of AT&T, will replace Edward Whitacre on Sunday as CEO. Verizon Wireless reportedly plans to introduce a device this summer to compete with the iPhone. Last month Sprint did the same when it introduced its Upstage.